Starlink satellite internet terminals are widely used by Russian forces in Ukraine. . The publication reveals that the terminals developed by Elon Musk’s SpaceX will be used to coordinate attacks in eastern Ukraine and Crimea. Additionally, Starlink terminals can be used on the battlefield to control drones and other forms of military technology.
The terminals reach Russian forces through a complex network of black market sellers. This is despite the fact that Starlink devices are banned in the country. WSJ We followed some of these sellers as they smuggled the terminals into Russia and even ensured that the shipments made it to the front lines. According to the reports, some of the terminals were originally purchased on eBay.
This black market for Starlink terminals reportedly extends beyond occupied Ukraine into Sudan. Many of these Sudanese traders resell units to the Rapid Support Forces, a paramilitary group that has committed ethnically motivated killings, targeted abuses of human rights activists, sexual violence and the burning of entire communities. WSJ notes that hundreds of terminals have found their way to members of the Rapid Support Forces.
Back in February, Elon Musk addressed previous reports that Starlink terminals were being used by Russian soldiers in the war against Ukraine. “To the best of our knowledge, no Starlinks have been sold directly or indirectly to Russia.” . The Kremlin also denied the reports, . Despite these announcements WSJ says that “thousands of the pizza box-sized white devices” ended up with “some American adversaries and accused war criminals.”
Following these February reports, House Democrats have demanded that Musk take action. , noting that Russia’s military use of the technology “potentially constitutes a violation of U.S. sanctions and export controls.” Starlink actually has the ability to disable individual terminals and each item has geofencing technology designed to prevent its use in unauthorized countries. However, it is unclear whether black market sellers can avoid these hurdles.
House Democrats are demanding Musk take action, he said. He took steps on the grounds that the terminals were never intended for use in military conflicts. According to his biography, Musk was also there at the beginning of the conflict and ended the country’s plans to attack the Russian naval fleet. Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, wrote on X that “Civilians, children are being killed” as a result of Musk’s decision. He further denigrated the billionaire, writing: “This is the price of a cocktail of ignorance and a big ego.”
However, Musk responded and said that Starlink , so there was nothing to deactivate. He also said that the policy in question was decided before Ukraine’s planned attack on the naval fleet. Ukraine lost access to more than 1,300 Starlink terminals in the early days of the conflict. SpaceX reportedly charged Ukraine $2,500 per month to keep each unit operational, which increased to $3.25 million per month. This pricing is in line with the company’s high-cost Premium plan. It is worth noting that SpaceX donated more than 3,600 terminals to Ukraine.
SpaceX has not yet commented on this WSJ Report on the Black Market Distribution of Starlink Terminals. We will update this post when this happens.
This article contains affiliate links; If you click on such a link and make a purchase, we may receive a commission.